Carmen Goes Home
Carmen Goes Home is the ninth episode of the anime series Gun X Sword. It first aired on the 30th of August, 2005. It was the first episode in the 3rd volume: Separate Ways. Synopsis "That's right, after that, we all traveled together. It felt like it was destiny somehow, especially since the very next place we arrived at turned out to be Carmen's home town. Our stay wasn't a very long one, but something so terrible happened there. I'll never forget it, as long as I live." - Wendy Reuniting with Carmen 99, Van, Wendy & Joshua arrive in Trinolia, which turns out to be Carmen's home town. Unfortunately, Carmen's home town isn't as she remembers, and and old friend of hers seems to be at the center of it. Plot Van, Wendy, and Joshua hitchhike with Carmen 99 to her hometown named Trinolia where Van knows of an engineer who should be able to crack the data disk recovered from the dragon armor. Carmen 99 reunites with her childhood friend Hayetah, the daughter of an engineer named Findley who just happens to be the engineer Van was seeking. Hayetah declines Van's request because of her father is now crippled and in poor health, but Findley overhears Van's request and accepts. While Wendy and Joshua stay at Carmen 99's house to spruce up, Van goes with Carmen 99 to her old school where she explains that Findley and her father had been business partners, and that Findley had fostered her after the deaths of her parents. The town has prospered in the last six years thanks to a special flower Hayetah has helped cultivate. But Joshua overhears a conversation between Hayetah and a visitor and realizes Hayetah is growing the flowers for the Claw. He runs and tells Carmen, but knowing Van's reaction, orders Joshua not to tell him until she has gathered more information. She goes to Uncle Findley. She finds him collapsed in his lab, and he reveals the flowers are a drug that makes people happy, but it has horrible side effects – inhaling its pollen without the proper antibodies causes debilitating physical side effects, the cause of his poor health and crippling. The Claw supplies them with the medicine, but even with it, long term the pollen still causes problems. He begs Carmen to stop his daughter and destroy the flowers before they destroy the town, and Carmen goes to confront Hayetah. Their talk is interrupted by smoke coming from Hayeta's house. Wendy had made her own discoveries about the flowers. Trying to identify the flower Hayetah is growing, Wendy had inhaled too much pollen and collapses and then woke up joyful and hyper to an extreme degree. Seeking to find out what ailed his young companion, Van started looking for answers and found them in Findley. Hayetah has been growing the flowers for the Claw, Findley can no longer bear knowing what his daughter has done or knowing that he let her do it. He willing turns over the medicine to help Wendy and returns the disk, apologizing for not completing the job. Finally he asks Van to carry a message for him and then he sets fire to their house. When Hayetah and Carmen arrive, Van says Findley chose to die in atonement for his daughter's crimes and to free her from her obligation to The Claw. As things end the Carmen has lost her childhood friend and is no longer welcome in Trinolia, and Van is no closer to finding The Claw despite having the disk. Carmen takes it, offering to bring it to another engineer, and they hope it will have been deciphered by the time Van and crew catch up. As Carmen's aircar travels, she pauses to watch as Hayetah burns the flower field, and then leaves. Cast *credited as Jennifer Sekiguchi **credited as Kirsty Pape Quotes "Trinolia huh? It might be nice to go back home." - Carmen Van: "Look i didn't come all this way to meet a childhood friend of yours." Carmen: "Relax! Findley is her father. He was, kind of like my teacher." - Van & Carmen Carmen: "It's subtle, but you've changed somehow!" Van: "How'd you mean?" Carmen: "I don't know, that's why I said subtle!" - Carmen & Van Carmen: "I guess a lot of things have changed since I left haven't they?" Hayetah: "Yes. But there are still somethings that never change." - Carmen & Hayetah Hayetah: "The thing is, its been colder because of the rain so the flowers haven't bloomed yet. It won't be much longer." Fasalina: "That's alright, I shouldn't have come so early." - Hayetah & Fasalina (Fasalina's first line) "Welcome to my secret garden. I thought that I'd check in on them. They are almost in bloom now. Everyone will be thrilled." - Hayetah to Carmen about her flowers. Carmen: "Hayetah, you do realize what you're doing don't you? Get rid of them! Do you want to destroy out home!" Hayetah: "This town is my home. It has nothing to do with you!" - Carmen & Hayetah "It's excatly as you described it Hayetah, its not a garden anymore you were right. Despite all the flowers around you the one in your heart had died." - Carmen Gallery ep901.png|Carmen meets Van again ep902.png|Carmen ready to reunite with her childhood friend ep903.png|Carmen reunites with Hayetah ep904.png|Joshua & Wendy clean up Carmen's home ep905.png|Carmen's old school ep906.png|A young Carmen & Hayetah with Findley and Carmen's father ep907.png ep908.png|Joshua over hears Hayetah and a mysterious woman ep909.png ep910.png|Van & Joshua wonder whats happening to Wendy ep911.png|Carmen confronts Hayetah ep912.png ep913.png|Findley burns his house down ep914.png|Carmen protects Hayetah Ending9.png|Ending Screen Trivia * This is the first episode to use a different credits song - "Paradiso" by Hitomi. * There is no introductory narration in this episode. * The ending credits do not scroll through the various illustrations like other episodes, it only focuses on the Carmen credit screen of her sleeping in her car. Category:Episodes Category:Volume 3: Separate Ways